Tyres, have you checked yours recently?

Wet weather and tyres…

Tyres are so important, they are the only contact between your car and the road surface, in the dry weather we don’t tend to give them a second thought, but the recent wet weather has made driving more hazardous, especially during peak traffic times. Only today there has been an accident on the busy A3 between Hilltop Garage Services in Horndean and Petersfield. The cause of the accident was rain water flooding across the carriageway. The result of which has been gridlock for commuters trying to get to work.

Aquaplaning on the wet roads…

The accident was caused by a car aquaplaning on the surface water on the road.

Aquaplaning occurs when your car’s tyres can’t disperse the water trapped between them and the road surface, as a result the tyres don’t grip the road and surf on the water surface instead. Once this happens you lose control of the steering and braking, often the car spins out of control and causes an accident.

How to prevent aquaplaning…

Prevention is better than cure.

Keeping your speed down in really wet driving conditions is the key to keeping control, the faster you drive the more likely you are to end up aquaplaning.

Another important factor is the condition of your tyres.

Tyres are designed with tread patterns that not only grip the road surface, but also to pump away the water between themselves and the road. If your tyres are starting to wear out and the tread depth is getting low then they can’t pump away surface water as efficiently as they were designed to.

Check your tyres…

Now is the time to check your tyres and make sure that they are safe for driving in adverse weather conditions.

The legal requirement is to replace tyres when the tread depth is at a minimum of 1.6mm across the central three quarters of the tread area around its entire circumference.

But this is the bare minimum to keep your car legal and pass its MOT test, to work efficiently in wet weather tyres need to have at least 3 mm of tread left, anything less than this and the risk of aquaplaning becomes far more likely.

Think about the cost…

In these uncertain economic times many people want to save money and get the most out of their tyres. If changing your tyres at 3 mm seems like a waste of money when there is still tread left then perhaps you should think again.

How much you need to spend replacing worn out tyres pales into insignificance when you consider the fallout from an accident caused by worn out tyres, not only the financial implications, but also in terms of the human cost as well.

How much would it cost you if you couldn’t get into work? How inconvenient would it be if you were without a car until the insurance company paid out? What if you or somebody else was injured?

It has to be worth checking your tyres and if necessary replacing them, doesn’t it?

Hilltop Garage Services…

If you are not sure how to check if your tyres are fit for the winter weather we will check them for you for free.

Just call us on 02392 596038, drop us an email via our contact page, or simply pop in and ask one of our friendly approachable staff to help.